Warframe (opens in new tab) developer Digital Extremes is getting into the anime game with its first-ever animated short film: An introduction to Styanax, the game’s 50th warframe, which will be free for all players for a limited time.
Styanax is a “mighty and herculean” warframe inspired by ancient Greek warriors, a heritage that’s easily seen in the warframe’s design and abilities:
- Primary Weapon: Afentis – Styanax’s speargun matches his might. Throw Afentis to pin an enemy and nearby enemies will also be stunned. Throw Afentis onto the ground to create a field that buffs allies. When allies bolstered by Afentis kill an enemy, they maintain the buff for a short time after they leave the field.
- Lanex Syandana – A syandana for the intrepid. [Syandana, for the record, is basically Warframe’s term for back bling.]
- Axios Javelin – Call upon the Axios Javelin. Any enemy Styanax strikes with his javelin is pushed back. When the javelin propels an enemy into a wall, the area suffers a burst of damage.
- Tharros Strike – Summon Tharros, the shield of Styanax. Swing Tharros to repel enemies and reduce their shields and armor. Styanax regenerates health for every enemy struck.
- Rally Point – Draw enemy attention to Styanax. His resolve uplifts nearby allies, regenerating their energy and shields. Shield regeneration increases with the number of enemies near Styanax.
- Final Stand – Exude might and valor. Rise into the air and throw a barrage of Axios Javelins. The javelins deal damage to nearby enemies wherever they land. Direct hits to enemies deal even greater damage.
(A spot of trivia: Astyanax (opens in new tab) was the young son of Hector, who was thrown from the walls of Troy to his death after the Greeks sacked the city. The Greeks had some probably-warranted concerns about the whole “vengeance” thing, you see. Not exactly a picture of an imposing hoplite charging Persian lines, but it is a pretty cool name so I think we can let the details slide.)
Styanax will be free for all Warframe players for a limited time (duration currently unspecified) following the launch of Warframe’s Veilbreaker update, which Digital Extremes showcased in today’s devstream (opens in new tab).
Veilbreaker will also bring back Kahl-175, the fan-favorite Grineer, as a playable character in a new quest set after the events of The New War update, along with a bunch of new weekly missions that will enable players to increase Kahl’s rank and earn new customization items.
Warframe’s Veilbreaker update is set to go live in September. A date hasn’t been announced at this point, but you can find out more at warframe.com (opens in new tab).